AT&T To Double Upgrade Fee (From February 12th 2012)

[TheWeeBear]

Is there no end to their greed ?

http://www.windowscentral.com/att-double-upgrade-fee

Just Sharing

 

[Mr_pither]

Click to view quoted image


Is there no end to their greed ?

http://www.windowscentral.com/att-double-upgrade-fee

Just Sharing

No. But I could see an end to my continuing to upgrade thru them if they keep this up...

 

[HeyCori]

Yo, AT&T, I know you just spent 20 billion last year trying to upgrade your network, but that doesn't mean you have to bleed me dry at every turn.

Surprise! AT&T's network got very good - Jan. 9, 2012

 

[flash_focus]

And they have the only good selection of windows phones for the us too, super bs

Sent from my PI39100 using Board Express

 

[Dave Blake]

I'm not happy about this one I would understand an increase but double? How do you justify that either they have been charging way to little or they and way overcharging us now.

 

[Winterfang]

What's an Upgrade fee?

 

[Kahuna Cowboy]

On the heels of Verizon getting smacked for their attempt to charge for electronic payments?

 

[ninjaap]

I've been with ATT for a long time and I'm positive the upgrade fee used to be $35 then at some point it dropped to $18. Now it's back up to $38. Oh well. If you ask, sometimes the CS rep will credit you the fee.

 

[palandri]

The best part of the article is:

Talking points suggest the upgrade fee is for costs associated with selecting and activating your new equipment. But what if you buy online and activate the phone yourself?

 

[palandri]

I've been with ATT for a long time and I'm positive the upgrade fee used to be $35 then at some point it dropped to $18. Now it's back up to $38. Oh well. If you ask, sometimes the CS rep will credit you the fee.

I am sure I remember the $35 activation fee also.

 

[ninjaap]

I am sure I remember the $35 activation fee also.

Yup. And I bet most people never realized this, because we don't get charged up front for it. It only shows up on our first bill, which is a month later. Most people don't even bother to look through the items of their bill.

 

[oldpueblo]

I don't really understand what scenarios this pops up in. I'm signing up with AT&T soon but off contract, I have my own phone. Then in a month or whenever the Lumia 900 hits I'll be popping my SIM out and popping it into a 900 most likely also bought at full price. Will I have this upgrade fee then just by moving SIMs even though AT&T has given me nothing contractually? People seem to refer to this as upgrades only as in something coming from AT&T?

 

[palandri]

I don't really understand what scenarios this pops up in. I'm signing up with AT&T soon but off contract, I have my own phone. Then in a month or whenever the Lumia 900 hits I'll be popping my SIM out and popping it into a 900 most likely also bought at full price. Will I have this upgrade fee then just by moving SIMs even though AT&T has given me nothing contractually? People seem to refer to this as upgrades only as in something coming from AT&T?

Couple of things:

I started with AT&T back in like 1993. I switched to T-Mobile in 2007 and went back to AT&T in 2009. When i switched back to AT&T, I owned my own phone and went to an AT&T store to have my number transferred and get a new SIM card. The salesperson in the AT&T store, kept telling me I had to sign a 2 year contract. I kept telling him that I owned the phone and wanted a 30 day and out contract. He refused to do that. I left the store and called AT&T directly. Over the phone they transferred my number and sent me a new SIM card by mail on a 30 day contract. Total cost for the SIM card and postage was like $6.97.

When I got the new AT&T SIM card and activated it in my phone, there was an activation fee that showed on my bill.

The Lumia takes a micro SIM card, so if you need to change to a micro SIM card when you get your Lumia, there will probably another activation fee,

 

[petersun21]

Sell your iPhone and buy a wp7.

Sent from my PI39100 using Board Express

 

[Winterfang]

Can someone tell me what's an upgrade fee?

 

[ninjaap]

Can someone tell me what's an upgrade fee?

Typically, when you first sign up with a carrier (subsidized/unsubsidized phones) you're charged an activation fee. Then, after your contract is over, when you decide to upgrade to another subsidized phone you're charged an upgrade fee. Basically, its the same as the activation fee.

As palandri has pointed out though, activating a new SIM card with your new phone (unsubsidized, no contract), will cost you an activation fee.

 

[oldpueblo]

So if I swap a SIM card to three different phones in a weeks time because I'm trying to make up my mind, that's three activation fees?

On a side note, I have an odd question. I have a Verizon Trophy that's SIM unlocked. If my brother dropped his SIM card in from his AT&T dumbphone can he continue to not have a data plan since it's only an Edge device and not actually an AT&T phone? He doesn't care about a data plan.

 

[ninjaap]

So if I swap a SIM card to three different phones in a weeks time because I'm trying to make up my mind, that's three activation fees?

On a side note, I have an odd question. I have a Verizon Trophy that's SIM unlocked. If my brother dropped his SIM card in from his AT&T dumbphone can he continue to not have a data plan since it's only an Edge device and not actually an AT&T phone? He doesn't care about a data plan.

If it's the same SIM card that you're swapping around, then no fee. If you're activating 3 different SIM cards, then yes activation fee on all 3.

 

[oldpueblo]

I thought it was basically when the SIM checks in and the phone is a different IMEI then that's when they'd do it. How often do people change SIMs then and why would you if you kept the same phone number?

 

[ninjaap]

I thought it was basically when the SIM checks in and the phone is a different IMEI then that's when they'd do it. How often do people change SIMs then and why would you if you kept the same phone number?

When you buy the phone from ATT (subsidized or unsubsidized) they make you activate the new SIM card that comes with the new phone. If you come in with your own phone that you purchased elsewhere, you can just pop your old SIM card in.